The Cullen Express
by The-Twilight-n00b
Summary: ALL HUMAN. It's basically Twilight and The Polar Express combined. All in Edward's POV. Rate, Review and Enjoy!


_**Okay, obviously nobody else thought of this, so I'm taking the opportunity and being creative. This is is Edward's POV, the brunette girl he meets on the train is obviously Bella, and the know-it-all kid I decided could be Eric. Oh well. Reviews are like tips at a cafe', they aren't necessary but they sure are nice!**_

_On Christmas Eve, many years ago…_

… _I lay quiet in my bed._

_I did not rustle the sheets._

_I breathed slowly and silently._

_I was listening for a sound I was afraid I'd never hear._

_The ringing bells of Santa's sleigh._

"All right. All right, Alice, you had your water." Carlisle spoke to my sister, trying to be quiet so he wouldn't wake anybody. "Now let's get you upstairs and into bed."

"But… But… But, I have to… He said Santa would have to fly faster than light… to get to every house in one night. And to hold everyone's presents… his sled would be bigger than an ocean liner!" squealed Alice. So many questions came out of her, but so few were answered – most were forgotten.

"Your brother said that? He was just kidding you. He knows there's a Santa."

"He said he wasn't sure. He wasn't sure if Santa was for real."

"Of course Santa's real. He's as real as Christmas itself. But he won't come until you're sound asleep, young lady. Sweet dreams. Santa will be here before you know it. So go to sleep."

Alice's bedroom light flipped off, and I could hear footsteps becoming fainter as they sauntered down the stairs. I crawled out from under the covers to face my bookshelf, and pulled out a fat encyclopedia from the bottom shelf. I quickly flipped through the pages until I found _North Pole _somewhere in the middle of the book. I read the description aloud, but barely a whisper. "Stark, barren. Devoid of life." I heard footsteps suddenly coming toward my room and I quickly made do with the book, sliding it away, and balled up under the covers of my bed, my back facing toward the door. A tiny beam of light leaked through the door as it creaked open. Esme and Carlisle stood in the doorway.

"He's gotta be asleep by now."

"He used to stay awake all night waiting for Santa."

"I think those days are just about over."

"That would be sad if that were true."

"Yea, an end of the magic."

"Merry Christmas, sweetheart." Esme whispered.

"See, he's out like a light. An express train wouldn't wake him up now."

The door closed silently, leaving me by myself in the cold and dark room. I thought about the previous conversations, but one sentence stayed in my line of focus. I mouthed the words. "End of the magic"? I closed my eyes and fought restlessness, but something more than restlessness was keeping me awake. I suddenly felt the house jostle, not like an earthquake, like something big and powerful were passing along outside. My whole room was alive now, things were falling out of their cases, lamps and baseballs were falling onto the floor. I bounded out from under the sheets, slid into my robe, hastily put on my slippers and ran downstairs. I swung open the door and stepped into the cold. Lights were flashing by me at speeds unknown, but they soon began to slow down. Everything stopped, and the steam surrounding the object started to clear up. I ran down the pathway and skidded to a halt.

What in the world was a train doing in front of my house? Where was Alice? Carlisle? Esme? Surely enough they could hear it too, couldn't they?

"All aboard!" a faint voice called from behind the steam. Was he talking to me? I cautiously stepped closer toward the man. "All aboard!" he cried again. I soon got within close range and stared at the conductor, astonished.

"Well? You coming?"

I hesitated before speaking. "Where?"

"Why to the North Pole, of course. This is the Polar Express!" he shouted and gazed at the beautifully crafted locomotive. The North Pole? He must be talking crazy.

"The North Pole?"

"I see. Hold this please." He said as he handed me a lantern.

"Is this you?" he asked as he showed me a clipboard, "Yeah." I replied.

"Well it says here… no photo with a department store Santa, no letter to Santa. And you made your sister put out the milk and cookies. Sounds to me like this is your crucial year, so if I were you, I would think about climbing onboard…" he spoke in a gravelly tone. "Come on, come on, I've got a schedule to keep." I said nothing but instead shook my head _no_. "Suit yourself." he replied. He turned and waved the lantern to obviously start the train up again. An extremely loud whistle sounded and the train sluggishly moved forward.

I thought back on everything he said, and after two-and-a-half seconds of arguing with myself, I quickly seized the opportunity and ran onto the train, just as it started to pick up speed.

"Ahem." coughed someone from behind me. I turned slowly to find the conductor standing tall next to a sliding door. I hesitantly stepped up toward him as he held the door open for me and slipped inside the coach. Other kids and some teenagers were running back and forth to other seats, singing and shouting. I eventually found an empty bench and sat down, staring out of the window and sticking my fingers through the hole in my robe's pocket, remembering how I tore it when I pulled it off of my bed post while trying to rush outside. I looked over at the bench next to me to see a girl about my age staring back. Her brunette hair hung down over her shoulders and her chocolate brown eyes kindly gazed at me. She flashed a smile, and I was about to smile back until I was interrupted.

"Hey. Hey, you. Yea, you. Do you know what kind of train this is?" a kid in the seat in front of me questioned hardly. His semi-long, black hair shook as he studied my face.

"Uh…" was all I could manage.

"Train. Do you know what kind of train this is? Well, do you?"

"Of course," the girl in the seat across softly stated. "It's a magic train." She gazed at me and smiled again. "We're going to the North Pole."

"I know it's a magic train. Actually it's a Baldwin… S-class steam locomotive… built in… at the Baldwin Locomotive Works. It weighs… pounds and…" I barely paid attention to him; I didn't care much at all what he was saying. "Are we really going to the North Pole?" I asked the girl next to me, but I was interrupted once more.

"Hey look! Herpolsheimers! Herpolsheimers!" All of the kids ran to the window to gaze at the fascinating department store. A little display of Santa Claus placing gifts under a tree had been set up in the window. "Wow, look at all those presents! I want all of them!" cried the know-it-all kid. "It's so Christmasy and cozy and beautiful!" whispered the brunette girl who stood beside me.

"Tickets! Tickets please! Tickets!" The conductor sauntered down the aisle while clacking a hole-puncher in his hand. He approached my seat. "Ticket, please." I shook my head. _I never got a ticket, what; does he expect one to just appear in my hands? _"Try your pocket!" he exclaimed. I reached into my pocket, but felt nothing except for the hole in it. "Try your_ other_ pocket." he mumbled. I reached into my other pocket and froze. I slowly pulled out an astounding gold ticket that shimmered in the light, no matter which way I turned it. I hesitantly handed him the ticket and he plucked it from my fingers, punching dozens of holes in it and showering me in a golden snowfall. He handed it back. "Thank you, sir. Hey, watch out, there." He shouted at some other kid in front. "Thank you, sir. That is a public-address microphone, it is not a toy." He once again shouted.

I gazed at my ticket and noticed the B-E that he punched onto it.

_What could that possibly mean…?_


End file.
